Unit 12

Word

Definition

Example

camel

a large desert animal with a long neck and either one or two humps (=large raised parts) on its back

Camels can live for a long time without water.

desert

an area, often covered with sand or rocks, where there is very little rain and not many plants

Take lots of water if you're going out into the desert.

dolphin

a very intelligent sea animal with a long grey pointed nose

Dolphins don't enjoy performing or doing tricks.

elephant

a very large grey animal with four legs, two tusks (=long curved teeth) and a trunk (=long nose) that it can use to pick things up

They say that elephants never forget!

giraffe

a tall African animal with a very long neck and legs and dark spots on its yellow-brown fur

Giraffes have long necks to reach the tops of trees.

gorilla

a very large African monkey that is the largest of the apes

Did you know gorillas make a new nest every night?

grassland

a large area of land covered with grass

Many animals live in the grasslands in Africa.

lion

a large wild cat that has golden brown fur and that lives mainly in Africa

When we were on safari, we could hear the lions roaring.

lizard

a reptile that typically has a long body and tail, four legs

A small lizard ran across the hot rock.

monkey

a small brown animal with a long tail, which uses its hands to climb trees and lives in hot countries

Monkeys can use their tails to hold onto branches.

ocean

the great mass of salt water that covers most of the Earth's surface

Does anything live at the bottom of the ocean?

rainforest

a dense, damp forest with a huge number of different kinds of plants

Sadly, the rainforests are disappearing.

shark

a large sea fish with several rows of very sharp teeth that is considered to be dangerous to humans

There aren't any sharks in the sea here, are there?

snake

a long, thin creature with no legs that slides along the ground

Watch you don't stand on that snake!

tiger

a large wild animal of the cat family with yellowish-orange fur with black lines that lives in parts of Asia

Most tigers are orange and black, but I've seen white tigers.

whale

a very large animal that lives in the sea and looks like a fish

We were all scared when a whale appeared beside our boat.

zebra

an African animal that looks like a horse and has black and white stripes

Is it possible to ride a zebra like you can ride a horse?

bring up

raise a child

I was brought up by my

grandparents.

cut up

break something down into pieces

He cut the vegetables up and started making the soup.

end up

the result of a past action or event

We're travelling across the USA and planning to end up in San Francisco.

fill up

make something full

Before a long drive, I always fill up the car with petrol.

grow up

grow older / become an adult

My best friend grew up in Spain, so she's fluent in Spanish.

keep up

continue to do something

Our basketball team won the league last year, so hopefully we can keep up the winning ways this year!

split up

to end a relationship

Apparently, 5% of animals are together for life and don't split up.

wake up

stop sleeping or feel energetic

The noisy traffic outside the hotel woke him up really early.

explain

to make something clear or easy to understand by describing or giving information about it

Can you explain this mathematical formula to me?

nature

everything in the physical world that is not controlled by humans, such as wild plants and animals, earth and rocks, and the weather

Nature makes the most beautiful thigs

poison

a substance that can make people or animals ill or kill them if they eat or drink it

The pest control officer put bowls of rat poison in the attic.

scene

part of a play during which there is no change in time or place.

Everyone remembers the shower scene in Psycho

science

the careful study of the structure and behaviour of the physical world, especially by watching, measuring, and doing experiments, and the development of theories to describe the results of these activ

Chemistry, biology, and physics are all science subjects.

sun

the star that provides light and heat for the earth and around which the earth moves

Let's sit in the sun and relax.